Contravening protocol costs SMM US$ 4.1 million

United States – Sims Metal Management (SMM) has agreed to pay a fine of US$ 4.1 million to settle a civil case brought by the city of San Francisco and Contra Costa County, California.

SMM, which owns and operates eight metal recycling facilities in Northern California, has consistently violated laws designed to deter metal theft, according to the district attorneys.

Scrap metal dealers must take steps to determine that material they purchase is not stolen. As part of the law, scrap metal dealers must photograph, fingerprint and record the identification of individuals selling certain types of scrap metal. SMM repeatedly failed to follow that protocol.

Besides the US$ 4.1 million fine, the company will be bound by a permanent injunction that ensures good business practices and prohibits future violations of the law. By entering into this command, SMM is agreeing to procedures that will make it a model for Californian metal recyclers in the future, according to a report in Waste Dive.

In other company news, SMM announced last month the sale of its interest in Metal Management Aerospace, Inc to ELG Utica Alloys. Based in Hartford, Connecticut, the business specialises in the recycling of titanium alloys and high temperature metals. The subsidiary of SMM’s North America Metals business was deemed to be non-core owing to ‘the unique aspects of its processing capabilities and associated commodities’. The terms of the sale have not been disclosed.